Howdy, y'all! I've been working on SnK fics for a while now, so I thought this is the time to post one.

I put this fic at T because of mentions of sex and sexual content and some language, but nothing grossly offensive. I've made up my mind, but if these things bother you, use your judgement.

The timeline is a little before the 57th Expedition.

Ah, I've ranted! Enjoy my work and reviews would be sweeter than pie!

Erwin Smith had felt the presence of someone standing in his doorway for several seconds. When the person started to tap his foot impatiently, expecting the commander to say something, he knew who it was.

He looked up from his massive stack of papers: they were the typical reports he had to make to the Military Police to ensure them that the Survey Corps was doing more than needlessly sending soldiers to their deaths.

"Is there something I can help you with, Levi?"

The small man stood slouched with his arms crossed, his left shoulder leaning against the doorway with an agitated look on his angular face.

"There is, actually."

Levi was a proud man. He wasn't incapable of asking for help, but Commander Erwin couldn't remember the last time he had.

"Is it regarding Eren Yeager?" he asked impassively.

"He's an incompetent, impatient, exhausting little brat."

"In other words?"

"Nothing new," Levi concluded.

"Then, what do you need?"

"I need your help," the black-haired man said.

"Yes, you've previously mentioned that. You need my help with what?"

"I need your help with cleaning."

Erwin snorted in amusement. "Cleaning? You hate the way I clean - no - I believe you said that my grasp on the concept of cleaning was equivalent to that of a senile old man sloshing around in a mud puddle. Has this changed?"

"No," was the curt response.

"Then, why do you need my help?"

There was a moment of silence. "There's this chandelier."

Erwin smiled menacingly, understanding his corporal's dilemma. "Oh, I see."

Levi straightened, motioning for Erwin to follow him. "So, c'mon-"

"Oh no," Erwin said, eager to enjoy every moment of this. "Not until you admit it."

"Tch, admit what?"

"Why you need my help."

The corporal narrowed his eyes. "Are you a child?"

"I haven't had a good laugh in months, probably because I've been spending so much time with you. If you want that chandelier cleaned then you're going to have to tell me why you can't do it."

"Because..." Levi sighed and looked down at the floor. "I cannot reach," he finished in barely a whisper.

"Hmm?" his commander prodded, not satisfied with his volume.

"I cannot reach." Steel-gray eyes met Erwin's blue for emphasis.

He stood. "Now, I would be happy to help."

He followed his corporal to a room that he was sure nobody was using. It wasn't as if that mattered to Levi, however. He wanted every inch of wherever the Survey Corps went clean.

The barren room's wooden floors shone to the point of being able to see one's reflection and Erwin could not find one spot on the wall. He looked up at the ceiling and found Levi's bane. A very old chandelier was suspended, covered in cobwebs that were so thick the corporal had probably screamed.

Levi crossed his arms again, this time with a feather duster in hand. "It's disgusting," he concluded.

Erwin sighed. Was this really a priority? "No one uses this room."

"You think I don't know that?" Levi challenged. "I was the one giving room assignments while you were off somewhere else, busy with your conveniently-timed constipation."

Erwin raised a thick eyebrow. "None of my other subordinates dare to talk to me like that," he said smoothly as he stalked over, stealing a deep kiss with his corporal before the smaller man pushed him off.

"Nope. Not until you clean."

"That's cruel."

"That's the agreement," Levi stated.

"What agreement?"

"The agreement if you ever want to touch me again."

Erwin scoffed and pouted his bottom lip. "That's beyond cruel, Corporal."

Levi mocked him in fake sympathy. "Oh, you poor thing. Do we have a deal?"

Erwin really wasn't in the mood to clean and with Levi's standards he'd be there all day, but then he tried to imagine just one week without physical contact and shook it out of his head: too scary.

"You leave me with no choice. However, this room is at least twice my height, so even I couldn't possibly reach. Don't you have a ladder?"

"Fucking Four-Eyes has it," Levi said caustically.

"So, how do you intend on us reaching that chandelier?"

"I'm going to stand on your shoulders."

Erwin flushed in irritation. "I see, so you actually don't want me to clean at all; you just want to use me for my height, so you can clean the chandelier to your perfect standards."

"Obviously," Levi said as though Erwin should've seen it coming. "As if I'd really need your help with the cleaning portion. C'mon, Erwin."

Now angry, the commander snarled and went for the door.

Levi immediately jumped in his way, arms outstretched. "Where do you think you're going? Remember the agreement," he blurted out, starting to sound a little desperate.

Erwin crossed his arms. "I can do without touching you," he declared, lacking confidence in that statement.

The corporal's eyes turned hard as he asked, "Why? Have you been touching anyone else?"

Erwin smirked. "We're really having this conversation, Levi?"

Levi set his jaw. "Do we need to have this conversation, Erwin? You've been spending a lot of time with Mike lately."

"Lately? He's been one of my closest friends for many years and-"

"Is that all he is?"

"This is utterly ridiculous."

"How can I know that?"

"Why, Levi, are you jealous?" the commander asked with a fake incredulous tone.

"Flattering yourself isn't attractive, Erwin. I just want to make sure that I'm not wasting my time."

"Well, you can relax because I've only been touching you and myself."

"Thank you for the visual."

"Hey, you interrogated me; I'm just giving you the truth."

"Can we get back to the task at hand, please?"

"Well, you were the one who started asking me all these weird questions about Mike. I know you two don't like each other for some reason, but that's not my doing."

'Actually, it is,' Levi thought as he remembered his face being shoved into a disgusting puddle of muck years ago and Erwin giving the order. "Whatever," he scoffed.

Erwin walked underneath the chandelier and motioned for Levi. "We don't have all day."

Levi removed his jacket, the stretch of muscle underneath his cotton shirt causing Erwin to stare. Removing his cravat, he scolded the commander. "Hey, Erwin! Focus."

"I am..."

"On the chandelier, not on me." He stood beside his commander. "Give me a platform."

Commander Erwin locked his fingers together and held them out to the younger man. Levi planted his small foot there and gracefully climbed up until each foot was placed on Erwin's broad shoulders.

Although Levi was perfectly balanced and Erwin knew that, he held the corporal's ankles firmly in place.

"Do not use this as an excuse to gawk at me," Levi commanded and Erwin couldn't deny that he was thinking about it.

However, he decided not to make the corporal angry because he did not want to find out if he were serious about his threat. He was the commander, but he would never use that position to force physical contact out of Levi, even if he were only putting his body on strike out of spite. He despised those in positions of authority who did such things.

Levi finished the chandelier in a record time, all while Erwin could barely feel the weight of him on his shoulders. "Let me down."

The commander purposely jerked Levi down, knocking him off balance to catch him, one arm under the corporal's knees and the other on his side. The sudden motion caused Levi to gasp and sent the feather duster to the floor. Levi's shocked expression soon became reprimanding. Erwin leaned in closely, locking eyes with his captive. "Permission to touch, Corporal Levi?" he asked gently.

Levi smirked. Sometimes, when Erwin looked at him like this, he would momentarily forget why he was so pissed. "If you're lucky," he said as he leaned too, but a loud, booming voice startled them out of kissing.

"Good afternoon!" Hange stepped through the door with a wide grin.

Erwin immediately set Levi down, just in case it was someone that didn't know about them.

"You didn't lock the door, you oaf," Levi scolded him, the soft expression drained from his face as he adjusted his crumpled clothes.

"Ah, don't worry!" Hange said cheerfully. "It looks like I came before you could get far."

"Can I help you with something, Hange?" Erwin asked routinely.

"Yes, Hange, can we help you?" Levi asked dryly.

"Oh, no no no! I was just looking for the ladder. I heard it's in here. Although if I'm mistaken, it looks like we could always use the commander's impressive erec-"

"That ladder's in the closet," Levi stopped her, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Delightful!" She went into the closet and retrieved the sturdy ladder, giving a curt nod to her comrades. "I'll leave you kids alone," she left, closing the door and leaving Levi's lie out in the open.

Erwin thought that was strange. Why would Levi go to all that trouble just to stand on his shoulders when he could've used the ladder by himself? Even the corporal could've gotten the job done with a ladder of that height. It was very uncharacteristic of him to get caught in a lie so dumb and pointless. "Fucking Hange," he muttered.

"Either you can see the future or you were lying about Hange having the ladder."

"It's not important," Levi said.

"Yes, it is." Erwin was frustrated. "That was not light paperwork that I was doing and I only agreed to help you because I thought this had a purpose."

"You only agreed to help because I threatened not to have sex with you," the corporal countered with a sneer.

"Don't get saintly with me," Erwin snarled, pointing at Levi's nose. "You have needs just like I do."

"Of course I do," he swatted the commander's hand away. "But the difference between you and me is that my needs don't always include sex," he finished triumphantly, crossing his arms.

Erwin narrowed his eyes. "And those other needs would be...?" he asked, hoping to get the scowl off of the corporal's face. He was sure to give himself frown lines if he kept that up.

"As if you care," the smaller man scoffed.

"No, Levi, I care. I truly, truly care." His impatient tone made it seem otherwise, but he did.

"No strings attached."

"Pardon?"

"That's what we said, when we started-" Levi's arm motioned back and forth in the space between them. "Whatever this is."

"This?"

"The sex - all of," he motioned again. "This - whatever the hell this is called."

"Do you mean a relationship?"

Levi made a hissing noise. "Don't use that word!"

"Relationship?" Erwin saw the corporal cringe as he repeated the forbidden word. "Why not?"

"Because...because it can't be. It's not supposed to be. It's like you said: We both have needs and that's where it ends. It's pure-based instinct and that's why this isn't a relationship."

Erwin nodded. "But you want it to be."

Levi stiffened. "I never said that."

"You didn't need to. It's obvious."

"Obvious?" he asked tightly. Nothing about him was supposed to be obvious. Levi was the man who knew what made everyone else tick. No one was supposed to know that about him, least of all Erwin.

"You know how I know?"

Levi glared. "How?"

"All of that," he said as his finger motioned up and down Levi's body.

"What?"

"Your stance, your face, your voice; you care about what we have, or else we wouldn't be having this conversation."

"Don't flat-"

"I'm not flattering myself," Erwin said confidently. "Admit it, it's the truth."

"Not in your wildest dreams."

"So, the ladder? All of those questions about whom I've been touching?"

"Fine! You win, you son of a bitch. I've got feelings for my commanding officer. The one thing that's completely idiotic for any soldier, especially a member of the Survey Corps, has happened to yours truly: Humanity's fucking Strongest. Is that what you want to hear?"

"It's a start."

"May I go now?"

"No."

"Is that an order, Commander?"

Erwin sighed. "Let's not go there."

"Well, spit it out," the corporal said.

"This can be a relationship. There's nothing wrong with that."

"How can you say that?" Levi asked.

"If it's mutual, how is that bad?"

"Do you have any idea the shitstorm that would come with our "relationship" if people found out?"

"We've kept what you call pure-based instinct quiet for a long time. What's the difference if we change the status of these night visits?"

"Because this doesn't feel right to me," Levi blurted out.

"Why not?" Erwin asked, feeling like he was inching more closely to the real problem.

"You, who call this a relationship, don't treat it like one."

"I don't?"

"No, you don't," Levi confirmed. "I barely see you."

Erwin chuckled. "You just saw me last night."

And then, the corporal snapped. "See, you're doing it again! I'm not talking about sex, moron! That doesn't count as seeing me, in case you don't know."

Erwin shrugged. "Why not?" He softened his tone when Levi gave him a look. "Why does the sex bother you?"

"The sex is great, but..."

"But?"

"If I can be frank, Commander, I'd like to be treated more than an accessory to you playing with yourself!"

"Excuse me?"

"Sometimes, I need more than great sex."

"Is that all?" Erwin asked with a gentle smile.

"You make it sound so unimportant."

"That is not my intention. How can I make this better?"

Levi shrugged.

"How?"

"You could start by asking me how my day was or telling me I look nice, because we both know I'm not getting any younger."

"Levi, you're only-"

"The number's not important."

Erwin took his hand and, surprisingly, he didn't pull away. "I had no idea you were feeling this way. I admit that when my day is over I'm fairly antsy and I don't feel much like talking."

"Understatement."

Erwin looked horrified. "Please don't tell me we've been having sex when you didn't want to!" he gasped.

"No, it's not like that."

He breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good."

"My problem is not the sex, but the lack of contact that comes before and after it."

Erwin put on a face, musing. "Oh..." he said, in deep thought. "Well, know this: If you want me to talk to you, but never touch you for the rest of our lives, then I will."

"Considering our profession, that may not be very long."

"You know what I mean." He squeezed the smaller hand underneath his brawny one. Levi's hand wasn't perfect. It was calloused, scarred, and a lot of his fingers were off-angle due to breaks, but Erwin liked it more for those reasons.

He liked all of Levi's scars, actually; most of which he'd received in his first few years with the Survey Corps, when he was still an absolute deadly asset, but paid no mind to being careful with his body. It wasn't until he began to move up in the ranks that Erwin made him act not so recklessly. People looked up to Levi and the self-destructive rage he used to use on the battlefield had been deemed a bad example.

"We can talk about anything you want. I don't want you resenting me."

Levi's scowl lightened up a bit. "Trying to get me in the mood?"

"No," the commander laughed. "And believe me when I say that I'm looking at no one but you."

"Are you sure about that?"

"I'm positive. I don't know if you've noticed, but whenever there is a meeting, I can't keep my eyes off you."

"You can't keep your hands off me, either," Levi said smugly.

"I believe that's mutual."

Levi furrowed his brow. It happened again. Erwin had used his incredible powers of persuasion and now Levi felt like an asshole for ever being angry. How was Erwin supposed to know this stuff if he'd never mentioned it to him?

'Redemption, Levi,' he thought. He caught the commander off-guard by standing on his toes and planting a kiss on his soft cheek. "You need to shave," he told the commander as golden stubble scratched at his lips.

"I do apologize."

Levi shook his head. "I know you're a busy guy." He gave Erwin a quick peck on the lips and then he opened the door and gave the older man a light shove towards it. "I'll see you tonight, Erwin Smith; 13th Commander of the Survey Corps."